1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of dyeing a plastic lens by vapor phase transfer, a plastic lens obtained by use of the dyeing method, and a dyeing system, a dyeing device, and a dyeing jig for a plastic lens to implement the dyeing method.
2. Description of Related Art
Heretofore, there have been known lenses with graphic designs such as pictures and letters. These designs are given to the lenses by affix of seals on which pictures, letters, and the like are printed or by silk-screen printing on lens surfaces.
Such the pictures and letters applied on the lens surfaces by the seals or the silk-screen printing tend to peel as time passes. Instead of the printing on the lens surfaces, dyeing pictures, letters, and the like on lenses may solve the above problem. However, there has been proposed no method of dyeing the pictures, letters, and the like on lenses.
The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances and has an object to overcome the above problems and to provide a method of easily dyeing desired graphic designs such as pictures and letters on a plastic lens, a plastic lens obtained by use of the dyeing method, and a dyeing system, a dyeing device, and a dyeing jig for implementing the dyeing method to easily dye the desired graphic designs on a plastic lens.
Additional objects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The objects and advantages of the invention may be realized and attained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations particularly pointed out in the appended claims.
To achieve the purpose of the invention, in a first aspect, there is provided a method of dyeing a plastic lens, the method including: a producing step of producing a print base body on which a print area is printed with a sublimatable dye by a printer under control of a computer, the printer being previously supplied with the dye; a placing step of placing the print base body and a lens to be dyed so that the print area on the base body is brought into nearly close contact with a lens surface to be dyed; and a transferring step of heating at least the print base body to sublimate the sublimatable dye of the print area, thereby transferring the dye to the lens surface to be dyed.
According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a plastic lens obtained by use of the dyeing method in the first aspect.
According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a dyeing system for a plastic lens, the system including: a computer which stores at least color data and into which data on a desired graphic design and data on color of the design are input; a printer which is connected to the computer and supplied with a sublimatable dye, and prints a print area with the dye based on the input data under control of the computer to produce a print base body; a placing unit which places the print base body and a lens to be dyed so that the print area on the print base body is brought into nearly close contact with a lens surface to be dyed; and a transferring unit which heats at least the print base body to sublimate the sublimatable dye of the print area to transfer the dye to the lens surface to be dyed.
According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a dyeing device for a plastic lens, the device including: a lens holder for holding a lens to be dyed; a pressing member including a pressing part having a shape substantially corresponding to a shape of a lens surface to be dyed; a pressing unit for applying a pressing force to the lens and the pressing member which are in nearly close contact with each other through a print base body, from a side of at least one of the lens and the pressing member; and a heating unit for heating at least the print base body.
According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided a dyeing jig for dyeing a plastic lens, the jig including: a lens holder for holding a lens to be dyed; a pressing member including a pressing part having a shape substantially corresponding to a shape of a lens surface to be dyed; and a pressing unit for applying a pressing force to the lens and the pressing member which are in nearly close contact with each other through a print base body, from a side of at least one of the lens and the pressing member.